Confidence
by Abacadea
Summary: To the point of arrogance, Ben Tennyson was confident. He always won. Rook Blonko was confident in his partner as well. Ben was always confident. Hints of BRooken but mainly BenRook bromance. Set when Ben finds himself in Khyber's hunting preserve in the episode A Fistful of Brains.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's notes: I wrote this fic because I wanted a more subtle BenRook story that still kept some canonical elements. It's more like a bromance thing, and if you squint it'll look like BRooken. Hey, I wanted a subtle BRooken. No flames, please. I take writing seriously but I don't expect to come out absolutely stellar with it.  
**

**You can skip this chapter if you have the episode A Fistful of Brains fresh in your mind. I wrote it because I wanted to establish Ben's fear that was observed in the scenes (or I'm overthinking things, but hey) but not addressed. Plus I think Khyber's playground had so much potential. So. Much. Potential.**

* * *

_Grrrr..._

A low growl escaped from the rock-based, crab-like life form. Mounted upon the creature was Khyber. Another beast joined by his side with a snarl—a red, sabertooth tiger-like beast. Ben took a few steps back. The Omnitrix beeped those familiar, accursed tones. Within seconds Ben reverted back into his human form,causing him to gasp as he realized he was defenseless.

"Tennyson," Khyber greeted. He opened his arms in a welcome gesture. "Welcome to my world. Literally."

The hunter's bass voice reverberated fear in Ben. He could feel the cold sweat beginning to form on his palms.

"Khyber," Ben greeted back, face having lost all color. But he quickly collected himself, putting up a brave front. "Wow. Ego much?"

"Hmph. Not at all. It's just a little play site I've set up to test out new weapons, torturing old enemies, or just to... take some me time."

The large, red feline beast took a few steps towards the Omnitrix user, growling and glaring with its angry red eyes as it did so.

"I see you've got a new lapdog. Cat. Whatever that thing is," said Ben.

"A Panuncian," Khyber proudly told him. "Very rare. And with a very, shall we say, _unique_ ability."

As if cued to do so, the Panuncian growled louder, raising its head to reveal the other half of its large spiked collar. Ben instantly recognized the device attached upon it.

"Aaand big surprise," Ben's words came out gutsy, but he knew he had to be sweating buckets by then. Unthinkingly, he took a couple steps back. "It's wearing your Rip-Off-A-Trix."

"The _Nemetrix_ may have started as a pale imitation of the Omnitrix, but..." Khyber paused. He closed his eyes and nodded for a second, clearly relishing over his apparent advantage. "Well, you'll find out about that soon enough. First, a game."

"Wait, don't tell me. Let me guess: You hunt me, and if I survive until sundown or whatever you'll let me go."

Khyber stared at the boy with his sunken red eyes. His smirk grew wider. Ben felt a shiver go up his spine.

"Oh, no," Khyber responded with a chuckle. "The game continues until... _you _cannot."

Ben gulped.

"An unlike our previous encounters..." Khyber paused for a moment, before continuing. "No one will be coming to rescue you."

"Hah. Rescue _me?_ Helloo? Have you been paying attention _at all_, Khyber?" Ben said in a mocking tone. He patted himself on his chest. "I'm Ben Tennyson. I rescue _other people?"_

Ben put his hands on his waist and stuck out his chest. Yes, he could do this. He'd beat a gazillion other bad guys before, and he'd been in a lot disadvantagous positions before. And every single time he came out victorious. This time was no different.

"So you say."

With that, a chip in his confidence. His confident smile faded.

"Hokay, I'll play your stupid game," Ben replied grimly. "But by the end, you'll be wishing someone was around to rescue _you."  
_

"You have no choice in the matter, Mr. Tennyson. The hunt begins... now."

"Bring it."

A bright flash of green emitted from the watch, his human form replaced by four copies Dittos.

"Hah! Good luck—"

"—chasing all of us—"

"—_at once!"  
_

The fourth copy stuck out its green tongue, spitting.

Much to his amusement, Ben knew the hunter was irritated. The hunter frowned. He hopped off his mount, and approached his feline beast.

"Fascinating creature, the Panuncian," he said as he kneeled next to his companion. He combed the beast's mane with his hand. "Native to the planet Hathor."

"Hey! That's Ditto's planet!" said the second Ditto.

"Where it's the natural predator of the Splixon."

"Hey! That's Ditto's species!" said the fourth Ditto.  
"Is it now?" Khyber sniggered. "Fancy that."

Khyber moved his fingers to the beast's collar. With a touch of his finger, the Nemetrix let out a flash of red light. The light faded quickly, revealing three additional copies of the beast. Four Panuncians brought their large paws forward. Ben gulped.

"Me and my big mouths."


	2. Chapter 2

The search was fruitless. It was futile. It was a wild moose chase.

Rook grinded his teeth as he glared at the map before him. 3700... No, it was now 3742. 3742 local findings of Ben's DNA. And _none_ of them were the actual Ben Tennyson.

Another report. 3743 findings of Ben's DNA. 3744. 3746. 3750...

_None_ of them.

Rook grinded his teeth harder. He resisted the urge to hit the display with his fists. Violence would solve nothing right now. Magister Tennyson said it was not his fault. What was done, was done. As the Earth saying goes, there was no use crying over spilled milk.

And yet...

"This is all my fault," Rook whispered to himself.

But guilt was soon replaced by anger. He wanted to throw Albedo into a cold cell. He wanted to punch Albedo's face in. He wanted to beat the living mucus out of the Galvan. He wanted to—

"Rook."

Rook's head perked up from the screen.

"Yes, Magister Tennyson?"

"Take a break. I'll monitor the reports."

"With all due respect, Magister—"

"I said, _take a break_."

"... Yes sir."

Rook reluctantly left the display and walked over to front of the Proto-TRUK. He plopped down onto the driver's seat, crossing his arms. He glared out the window. He glared at every single speck of red dust that flew across the window.

A particularly strong wind blew, and a small insect banged into the glass. When the wind had passed, the insect slowly, carefully got up. The wind blew again, but this time the insect could walk against it, scuttling across the glass and finally hopped off the vehicle.

The Revonnahgander sighed, releasing his arms and letting them hang by his sides. He leaned against his seat. This was not like him.

There was no need to worry. This was the legendary _Ben Tennyson_. Savior of the universe for "a million times, at _least"._ The Omnitrix user was undisciplined but unarguably resourceful, adaptive, and crafty. Legends aside, Rook had witnessed firsthand the human's triumphs against many seemingly impossible odds. This time was no different.

He glanced over at Magister Tennyson. The old, but fighting fit man was hunched over the display, looking at the occasional holographic window that floated before him. If Ben's own grandfather can keep his focus, surely Rook can too.

"Cooled down yet?" Max Tennyson asked without turning away from the displays.

"Yes, sir. I apologize."

"Good. We are returning to HQ."

"Sir?" Rook asked in confusion.

"There's nothing we can do here. Until we get a more reliable report, we can monitor better from HQ."

Max Tennyson left the table and sat down on the passenger's seat. Rook did not want to return to Plumber's HQ, but he realized there was really nothing they could do. He started up the Proto-TRUK engine and began procedures to take off. In mere minutes they were miles away from the red desert of a planet. Rook kept his gaze straight ahead. He opened his mouth to speak, but quickly closed it back. A few seconds passed. He then slowly spoke.

"Magister Tennyson, I..."

"Ben will be fine. He's a smart kid," Max assured the alien. "He's probably throwing a witty remark at Albedo, right now. He's not _the_ Ben 10 for nothing. And I didn't assign you as his partner for nothing."

That sparked something in Rook. Of course Max Tennyson was worried for his grandson, but the Magister was right. Ben was a superhero, and Rook his partner. He will find Ben and Ben will be fine.

There was no need to worry.


	3. Chapter 3

"I'm Ben freakin' Tennyson! You'll have to do better than this, skull face!"

In his Big Chill form, Ben spat a shard of ice at a downed Panuncian. A second later, the Omnitrix let out a few electronic tones and a bright flash of green, indicating a timeout. Ben fell to his knees, breathing heavily. He flicked sweat off his forehead with his arm. Despite his tiredness, he looked on at the three downed tiger-like beasts before him and smirked.

"Guess the cat's, uh, meow is stronger than its bite!" Ben paused for a second. "Okay, _that_ was bad."

Suddenly, he heard a whistle. Ben hastily got up, his hand ready over his watch. The beasts slowly got up. The bushes behind them rustled. Khyber emerged from among the trees and foliage. Ben was already selecting his next form of choice.

"Oh, I don't mean to alarm you," Khyber put up a hand. "I only mean to congratulate you."

"Congratulations, I'm free to go?"

Khyber chuckled. "Alas, you are not."

"Then what is it? You wanna fight? I'm sick of fighting your cats, Khyber."

"You've survived longer than most. That is quite a feat."

Ben had an unsettling feeling at the back of his mind. He unconsciously stepped away from the hunter.

"Yeah? And how much longer is that?"

"Oh, by a day or two."

"A day or—? How long have I been here?!"

Khyber smiled menacingly. "A day or two."

Ben looked up at the sky. It was still light out. In fact, it was still as bright as it was before... _Hours_ before. He glared accusingly at the alien huntsman.

"This is some kind of planet without night or something, right? With really short day cycles?"

"It probably is."

Ben's glare only grew more intense. "You're playing with me, aren't you?"

"I probably am."

Ben gritted his teeth. Khyber was toying with him. Well, two can play this game.

"You know, for the greatest huntsman in the entire galaxy, you're actually pretty lame."

Khyber's eyes narrowed as he slowly asked, "What do you mean?"

"Oh, nothing. It's just that you had to have me _here, _in your _own playground_, to come anywhere _close_ to capturing me," Ben eyed the three Panuncians with a smug grin. "And even then, you're failing just as miserably at it!"

He knew he'd struck a nerve. Khyber's eyes narrowed even further, his brows furrowed to no end. Then, suddenly, Khyber laughed.

"Tennyson, do you recall what this place is?"

"A place where you hide and cry when you realize nobody likes you?"

"This is a place where I test out new armaments, persecute old enemies, or spend some me time. Which one do you suppose your current presence is for?"

"The... first one?"

"No, Tennyson," the gills under his cheeks twisted as he smiled. "All three."

"That's a pretty lame hobby."

"Joke all you want, Ben Tennyson. You are not as brave as you pretend to be."

Khyber's gills flared, releasing a whistle of the same exact pitch every time. Ben readied himself. But the Panuncians did not charge at him—they left. Khyber turned around as well, walking away. Khyber halted after a few steps. He turned his head, glancing at the boy.

"And perhaps I'll take your advice..."

Khyber walked away, disappearing behind the foliage of the alien forest. Yet his voice resounded across the trees, as if he _was_ the forest.

"... I'll do _better_ next time."

Ben stood still, his green eyes fixed to where Khyber had been. He shook his head. Focus. That's what he needed. He let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding. He tried to still his arms he didn't realize had been shaking. He inhaled deeply, but a pained cough interrupted him. He held a hand against his chest. A bruised rib? It was the most likely thing Ben could think of.

Ben trudged carefully. He had to find a place to rest. He had napped in a tree earlier—At least, he thought it was a nap. He might have slept for hours and not realize a day had passed. There was no telling if it was day or night in this place. His watch was, ironically, of no help on that matter.

He activated the watch, hoping to turn into _any_ alien that could help him in search for shelter. A tiny exclamation mark was all that appeared on the dial.

He heard a whistle in the distance.

Ben quickly examined his surroundings. He waited for any signs of red, sabertooth tiger creatures. But the forest was silent. For a moment he could only hear his racing heart. Then he heard the flapping of wings, followed by earth-shaking thumps. He looked down at his watch. There was only that single exclamation mark icon. He yelled at his watch, "You have the worst timing ever!"

Having a rough idea of where the predators were coming from, Ben dashed in the opposite direction, ignoring the fatigue in his legs.

Ben wasn't sure how far he ran. The surrounding soon became that of a desert. The sounds of flapping wings were approaching behind him. He briefly glanced behind him. The predators have yet to catch up to him, appearing as no more as two dots in the distance. Two scary, savage dots.

He brought up his Omnitrix. The dial was up! He selected an alien, but didn't bother calling its name out—He was almost sure he wouldn't get what he wanted. After a burst of green light, Ben already knew he'd be disappointed. But he had to make the best out of the situation.

He split himself into multiple Dittos, and began to dig into the sand. They dug quickly, with a certain ferocity that only a cornered prey could have. Each tunnel went in a separate direction. One of the Dittos could hear the beasts hovering inches above the ground.

"Some predator you are," Ben joked to himself. All of a sudden a mighty claw plunged through the sand, slicing through one side of the Ditto. Ben gasped as the rest of the Dittos disappeared, leaving only the original Ditto himself. Panicking, and with adrenaline rushing through his veins, he dug blindly and desperately deeper and further.

_Clang!_ He had hit metal.

Ordinarily, this would have been an interesting find but Ben was more concerned with hiding at the moment. He spotted a gap between the metal and the ground around it. He poked a claw into the hole, and twisted his claw. Sure enough, the hole got bigger, and the other side was a hollow part of the ground. He quickly dug through the ground, finding the hole in the metal smaller than he thought. But it was enough for Ditto to fit through.

Once he cleared the dirt and earth away, the dreaded tones played. With a bright green light, Ben fell through the hole, falling face first on a metal floor with a loud thud. He slowly pushed himself up with a groan, a hand pressing against his side. "Why haven't I turned into a self-regenerating alien yet..." Ben murmured to himself. He concentrated on his hearing, wondering if Khyber's pets had given up the chase. So far so good.

He carefully sat up, keeping his hand firmly over his side. Slowly, he lifted the hand, bracing himself to see blood. Fortunately, there was none—But it did not hurt any less. He observed his surrounding. It was an empty, hollow dome made of metals of various origins. It was a small space; One could barely run in here. Plenty of vegetation grew on the walls, many of which gave out dim lights. Ben hoped they provided oxygen as well.

Ben pulled himself towards a wall and leaned his tired self against it. He let his arms flop by his side, but one of them landed on a less rocky texture. Ben turned to look at his left hand. It was a book under his hand. Curious, he picked up the book and opened it. He didn't recognize the language one bit. But he did recognize the format—a pattern of symbols on the top right corner of the page, followed by a bunch of writing for a few pages. It was definitely a journal. And it likely came from one of Khyber's victims.

The dome was probably built by one of the Khyber's victims too, Ben guessed. One who was no longer here. There weren't any bodies in here... So at least that meant the previous victim probably didn't die while hiding out down here. He relaxed, inhaling deeply and exhaling.

But just as he did so, the ground began to rumble. The walls and the ceiling threatened to collapse. The head of a Slamworm smashed through from the ceiling. It reoriented its head. Its gaze immediately snapped on the human.

Ben quickly stood up and searched through the dial of the Omnitrix. "C'mon, Omnitrix, Way Big would be _so_ good right now!" He hit the Omnitrix's component as soon as it popped up. A transformative flash soon revealed a small, fairy form. Ben groaned in annoyance—though it came out more like a purr.

The Slamworm let out a high-pitched shriek, preparing to strike. It lunged. Ben jumped and flew into the tunnel he had come from. He navigated swiftly through the tunnel, hoping with all his heart that Slamworm's thrashing wouldn't collapse the ground above him. But he was fast, and was out in the open in less than a minute.

His triumph was cut short as the Slamworm burst through the ground. It rose high from the ground, letting out a shriek. Ben threw his hands up in front of him. Sparkly green dust appeared from his hand, spreading and diffusing in the open air.

"Wh—_Pixie dust?"_He frowned at his small gloved hands. "What am I supposed to do, _sparkle_ my enemies to death?!"

Slamworm raised its tail and brought it down upon the transformed human. With a startled cry, Ben quickly flew out of the immediately a large ball of acid flew towards him. Ben dodged that with ease as well, owing to his Nemunia form's agility. He dodged another head-first lunge. He flew in circles around the Slamworm, sticking out his tongue.

"Nyeh nyeh, can't touch me!" he mocked as he made faces at it. "Predator _this, _you overgrown bird food!"

Just when he let his guard down, a red energy-based web was thrown towards him. He didn't have time to react, and the force field-like web brought him down to the hot sandy ground. He struggled against the web, but only managed to turn over on to his back. He was greeted by the sharp, drooling mouth of a Panuncian. Behind the Panuncian was a Terroranchula.

The Omnitrix began to power down as it played its series of beeps, ending in the inevitable flash of virescent light. Instinctively, Ben tried to reach for his wrist,but the web's strength weighed down upon him.

The Panuncian growled—almost in delight. It raised a paw of sharp claws, and brought it down in a slashing motion. Ben managed to move aside as far as he could within the web, causing the sabertooth alien to miss, cutting open the web. Ben took the opportunity and jumped up, running to place distance between him and the beast. He took a quick look at the enemies he was facing before returning to his Omnitrix.

"So it's the man-eating worm, Khyber's kitty cat, and the overgrown spider," Ben spoke to himself as the Omnitrix popped up its surface component. He desperately slammed his palm down on to the device. "Way Big, _please_ Way Big. Heck, a_nything_ big!" The Omnitrix's surface component was punched down, initiating the transformation.

But nothing happened. Ben looked down at his Omnitrix. The Omnitrix' green screen was now grey. The device was low on power. Ben paled.

A loud roar snapped his attention back to the fight. He quickly ducked as the Panuncian jumped at him. The tiger beast flew past him from above, finally landing gracefully on its feet behind him. A projectile of bright red webbing thrusted at him. He managed to roll out of the way. At the same instant the Slamworm's tail swept towards him from behind, successfully knocking him down.

He fell face first on the hot desert sand. But he quickly picked himself up. Once he stood up fully, he had a smile on his face. A sly, knowing smile. He turned to the tiger beast, gesturing tauntingly. "C'mere, kitty kitty kitty!"

Sure enough, the Panuncian took the bait and started to run at him. Ben ran as well, though his direction was far from random. He noticed the Slamworm raising its tail. He ran towards the Terroranchula. He stopped just meters away from the spider beast, and immediately spun around to face the tiger beast. The Panuncian paused momentarily, before bolting and lunging at him.

Expecting this, Ben rolled away, leaving the Terroranchula in the way of the tiger beast's attack. Startled, The spider alien shot out a large web at the Panuncian. The impact pushed the Panuncian back. The web pinned the beast down. The Terroranchula, upon realizing what had happened, turned to Ben with a sharp, angry hiss. But Ben was already running away from it. At the very same second, a large yellow tail brought itself down upon the Terroranchula, missing Ben by a few inches.

Ben rested himself with his hands against his knees, gasping. He looked at the sight before him with disbelief. "It... actually worked." With relief, he wiped the sweat off his forehead.

He noticed that the Omnitrix was up again. Without delay, he moved the dial and slammed down on the watch. He turned into Nanomech, but he had no complaints. He just needed to fly away as soon as possible before the beasts recover.

Wait a minute... Fly away?

Ben looked up into the amber sky. He can fly out of here!

With his resolve stronger than ever, Ben shot himself upwards. He didn't think of what might happen if he timed out in space, or if he'd even be able to navigate his way home. He just wanted to leave the stupid, damned, terrifying planet. He was getting out of there!

He could see the monsters and some riverbeds getting smaller and smaller. With a wide grin, he sped up. He could almost taste freedom. He can feel the air getting lighter. He—

He was shot by a blast of energy.

He screamed. As he fell, he saw a glint among the trees below. He descended towards the trees. The Omnitrix timed out. He felt his human skin scrape and scratch against every single plant appendage on his way down, his limbs slammed against every stiff plant appendage. He finally fell on a thick, lush bush, breaking his fall.

He tried to get up. He moved his hand around, trying to get off the thick bush. He managed to grab on to a fairly resilient tree branch. He pulled, but the sudden strain on his injured torso caused him to gasp and release his grip. He fell back on the bush, slightly panting.

He brought his wrist in front of his face. Or at least he tried to. His bloodied arm shook pathetically above him as he attempted to examine the state of his Omnitrix. Seeing his arm wasn't going to be able to move much further, he plopped it back down onto the large bush. He was tired.

But Khyber's pets would catch up to him sooner or later. Maybe even Khyber himself.

With mustered strength, Ben rolled himself off the bush, hitting the grassy ground with a thud on his side. He slowly pushed himself up with his arms, only for one of his palms to slip, and he fell back on to the ground. He fell head first, impacting his head against the ground. He slipped out of consciousness.

* * *

**AN: This... chapter got a bit out of hand, length-wise. Also, I'm not a witty person. Ben is a witty person. Therein lies our problem. I'm sorry.**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Thank you for reading Confidence! I really appreciate the review, follows and favs. :)  
Rook may seem odd here; For some reason I have a hard time writing him. Nevertheless, enjoy!**

* * *

Thousands of DNA findings, and not a single one of the thousands of DNA findings were legitimate. Just how many planets did Albedo plant those DNA samples on?

Rook stared at the map. The light emitting from the desktop map began to feel harsh on his eyes. Another report popped up holographically, but Rook did not get his hopes up. It was 32 light years away.

Rook sighed in frustration. He lifted himself from the darn map and sat on the front seat of his truck. He stared at the passing aliens, many of them were hawking their goods and many more were purchasing said goods. It was thankfully peaceful. He looked at the seat next to him.

"_I'm booooored."_

_Ben put up his leg on the dashboard of the truck and crossed his arms behind his head. It had been a completely uneventful patrol. To Rook, no news was good news and that meant all was well in Undertown._

_However, a bored Ben was a dangerous, fiddling Ben, so Rook had a suggestion._

"_Perhaps we should exchange some stories of our homeworlds? Revonnah has many tales. In my studies I have learned that Earth has many tales concerning small, winged females."_

"_You mean fairytales? Yeah dude, there's a lot, and they're not all about fairies."_

"_Do you know one?"_

"_Sure. My mom used to tell me this one all the time. There's this guy called the boogeyman..."_

It was empty. It was silent inside the truck. Normally he would welcome the change, but... not under these circumstances. His heart ached.

Heavens forbid. He actually _missed_ the loud, obnoxious, childish, green-eyed human boy. Rook stared at the empty seat beside him, realizing a certain emptiness.

Rook shook his head. No. This was no time for glumness. He left his seat and returned to the map with renewed resolve. There _had_ to be a way. Albedo, as intelligent as he was, was arrogant. And arrogance always allowed room for mistakes.

He looked for patterns in the location of planets where Ben's DNA were found. No suck luck. The locations were cleverly spread out, creating outliers in random directions. A new holographic window appeared in front of him. Seeing it was Magister Max Tennyson, Rook straightened his back and gave a quick salute.

"Magister Tennyson. How may I be of assistance?" asked Rook.

"At ease, Rook," Max said with a warm smile. "I'm just checking in. How are things in Undertown?"

"It is..." Rook thought for a moment, and with a small smile, said, "It is, as Ben would have put it, 'a yawn fest'."

Max smiled in amusement, seeing the effect Ben has had on the stoic Revonnahgander.

"Has there been any word from Azmuth?" Rook asked, hopeful.

Max shook his head. "None at all. He hasn't responded to a single one of our messages."

Rook frowned, but did not comment. Max gave him a reassuring smile.

"We'll find him."

"Of that I am certain, Magister."

"There's a good attitude," Max approved with a grin. "I've had a report of Ben's DNA finding on Peptos XI. We're still scouring what's left of the planet. I'll let you know if anything comes up."

"We have been there before. It must be residual traces," Rook muttered to himself. "It may not be Ben himself."

Max's eyes widened, as if a light bulb had gone off in his head.

"Residual traces," Max uttered. "That's it!"

From the screen, Rook could see Max turn around as he barked orders at the Plumbers in HQ monitor room.

"Scan for residual traces of tachyon engine emissions!" the old man ordered. He then turned back to the screen, smiling triumphantly. "If we can track those..."

Realization dawned upon Rook. "We can find the ship of whoever left the DNA samples we found."

"Exactly. And since Albedo has been traveling over hundreds of light years to leave the samples, there's still plenty of residues around to trace!"

Rook began to furiously punch commands into the console. Seconds later, red lines began to appear on the map, connecting each white dot on the map. All he had to do was triangulate Albedo's trail and he'd find him!

"I will leave for the plotted trajectory at once!" Rook exclaimed.

"What? Now you wait just a—"

Rook had already shut off the console and jumped into his seat. He gripped onto the steering controls and brought up the map on the dashboard interface. The computer was almost about done triangulating Albedo's final location. But Rook wasn't going to wait. The Proto-TRUK shot through the streets of Undercity, emerging into the open streets of Bellwood, and launched itself out of the atmosphere.

* * *

This was it. This was how Ben Tennyson was going to die.

Ben found himself pinned back against a large wall of stone. A sharp blade pointed at his chest, mere centimeters away. Khyber held the blade of steel with remarkable stillness. The blade's tip traveled slowly, mockingly, from his chest, over his neck, stopping right below his bloody chin. Blood trickled from his head, his neck, his shoulder, his hips... It was everywhere. He was bleeding everywhere.

"It was a great hunt, Ben Tennyson," Khyber's stentorian voice echoed throughout. Ben could feel his heart quiver in his chest.

Ben didn't know what he was thinking. His right hand moved quickly over to his left hand's wrist. The Omnitrix. He just needed to transform. He just needed to escape. He just needed—

He howled. Pain exploded from his left wrist. Khyber pulled the blade out of his wrist with a quick jerk, creating a gush of blood from the boy's wrist. Ben's right hand pressed helplessly against his wrist. He wheezed, he gasped. Tears formed in his eyes.

Khyber returned the blade pointed at the human's chest. "We can't have you transforming _now_. Not anymore. The game is over, Tennyson, and you are my trophy."

Ben opened his mouth to speak. To delay his imminent end. But no sound came out. His lips moved, and his tongue articulated. Yet he produced no voice.

Khyber simpered. "K.O., Tennyson."

The blade was thrust into his chest.

Ben awoke with a start. He sat where he was, wide eyed and panting, trying to figure out what had happened. He brought a hand to his chest. No sign of having been stabbed. He looked at his Omnitrix wrist. Bloody with scratches, but otherwise intact.

A dream. That's what it was. A bad, bad dream. Ben sighed heavily. Using his fingers, he moved his sweat-plastered hair to the back from his forehead. He looked around, trying to figure out where he was. He saw a great, big bush right next to him. Then he remembered where he was. He had fallen from the sky after Khyber shot him down. Since then, Khyber or his pets didn't go after him. They didn't bother him either when he slept in the tree yesterday, or two days ago, or... whatever. He still couldn't tell the time in this place. Part of him was relieved, but another part him was agitated. Khyber was toying with him.

Ben inspected his injuries. He determined he had some brusing in his ribs, a vague ache at his side, and dull pain at every single joint in his body. There were also scratches and several large cuts on his arms, but he can live with that. It could be worse.

He grabbed onto a low-hanging branch and pulled himself up with a grunt. He tested his steps. At least moving was bearable. He let go of the branch. He turned his head around, searching. His ears picked up the faint sound of water lapping. Water. Water would be good right now. He checked the Omnitrix. It was powered and functional. He turned the dialing wheel to Swampfire, hoping that the alien's regenerative abilities can help his human form. He sighed, knowing full well the Omnitrix would choose something else. He wearily dropped his hand onto the raised Omnitrix platform.

A brief shine of green later revealed he had transformed into his alien of choice. He grinned. At least _something_ was going right. He did feel stronger, but he could feel that he wasn't in as good shape as he'd usually be in his alien forms. There was a vague, full ache in his body. But that was good enough. He navigated his way towards the sound of water and, a few minutes later, came upon a river.

He kneeled at the riverbank. He touched the water with a finger. As Swampfire, he could feel the water being absorbed into his body, invigorating his plant-like vitality. The Omnitrix timed out a few seconds later, much to Ben's disappointment. He noticed the Omnitrix was timing out at a greater frequency than usual. He frowned in frustration at the water.

Then, he dunked his head into the river, and pulled it out seconds later. He shook his head to rid off the water droplets. Satisfied and refreshed, he grinned to himself. He scooped up some water and took a few sips, which soon turned into big gulps. He contemplated jumping and swimming in the river, but he knew better. Not only he could potentially be caught off-guard by Khyber, but there were also the other monsters that lived in the hunting grounds. Those weren't controlled by Khyber. If the wild monsters decide to eat him alive, they will eat him alive—Presence of whistles irrelevant.

_Thump._

Ben spun around, standing up in hurriedly. In doing so, he slipped, falling backwards and into the river. He splashed around for a bit, quickly orienting himself and pulled himself out of the water. He scanned his surrounding. Nothing.

"Wh-Whatever you are, show yourself!" he yelled.

Still nothing. His eyes finally rested on a round, blue spiky fruit on the ground, right under a tall tree. That hadn't been there before. Ben groaned. A freakin' alien coconut. He was startled by a blue alien coconut.

He looked at the sky. It was clear and bright as day—as usual. He looked at his Omnitrix. It was still timed out. But he wasn't sure if he'd have the strength to fly even if he transformed. His entire body still ached, and it was only now that he considered the possibility of timing out in space, effectively suffocating to death. If only he had a ship.

Suddenly, an idea dawned upon him. He knew that there were times when Khyber and his pet wasn't around—that must mean that those were the times they leave the planet. And to leave, they must use a ship!

Ben grinned at his new bright idea. He was going to look for Khyber's ship, or at least a large flat land that could very likely be used to land ships. Once he finds the latter, all he had to do was lie in wait, then take over the ship!

His grin faded when an image of a savage, fearsome Khyber popped in his mind. He shivered. He had a feeling the next time he sees Khyber, it'd be the last.

He wrapped his arms around himself and sighed. He wondered what grandpa Max and Rook were doing. Looking for him, no doubt. He could just imagine Rook lecturing him about rushing in foolishly and acting impulsively, his voice stern but his face indicating otherwise. Ben smiled a bit at the thought.

With determination, Ben began his trek in the jungle. He had to get himself a ship and, with any luck, figure out how to fly it.


	5. Chapter 5

Rook glanced at the computed route on the map on the dashboard screen. He was pushing the Proto-TRUK to its limits. The location was far off, but reachable by his ship. Rook silently berated himself for rushing off by himself—and Rook realized the irony of it—but it didn't matter right now. Right now, he had to get to his partner. The Plumbers would surely catch up, sooner or later.

It had been over twenty minutes since he reappeared from the wormhole. He was nearing the end of the line. The traces of tachyon emissions were all gathered at one spot on the map. He was close.

His eyes intently searched for a sign of any habitable planetary bodies—a planet, an asteroid, a moon—_anything_. He reached to a stop. He was merely kilometers away from the concentration of tachyon traces. Wherever Albedo's ship had docked at, it should be within visual range.

But there was nothing. Only blackness and stars in the distance. Refusing to be thwarted, he furiously performed scans from his ship. All results came up negative.

"That is impossible," Rook muttered to himself in frustration. "A ship cannot simply disappear!"

Rook glared at the results displayed on the screen. Suddenly, the map was replaced by the most infuriating face he thought he'd ever see.

"Revonnahgander," Albedo smiled smugly. "How ardent of you to pursue me this far across the galaxy!"

Rook growled. "Where is Ben?"

"I know nothing of that foul, repugnant human's fate," Albedo answered with a dismissing wave. Then, he stroked his chin and said in feigned innocence, "But perhaps Khyber would know of such a thing... They have, after all, been spending _so much_ time together."

"What? What have you done to him?"

"Are you daft? I just said I know nothing about what's happened to that ape. But perchance that I do, there's no reason I should tell you."

Rook's scowl deepened. He had an intense dislike for Albedo—Not only was the Galvan prone to evil deeds, the Galvan also looked much too similar to Ben for his liking. There was something disturbing about seeing Ben's ordinarily jovial face twisted into Albedo's corrupt expression, a face of pure malice.

Noticing the Revonnahgander's apparent loathe, Albedo's smile grew even more smug.

"I applaud your meaningless success of getting this far, Revonnahgander," said Albedo as he clapped mockingly. "But I must see to the cessation of your existence. The look on Tennyson's face when he discovers you are dead will be most amusing."

In an instant, the screen returned to the map display. Numerous white dots began to appear on the map. Rook looked out the front window. In this view alone he could see dozens of robot drone ships. Rook gripped his hands onto the steering handles. He gritted his teeth.

This was going to be one rough ride.

* * *

Ben ran for his life, his eyes darting back and forth between his front, left and right. He could feel the sting from the claw swipe earlier on his back. He could feel the sweat trickling past his cheek, moving with the wind as he ran as fast as his human form would allow. He brought the wristwatch to his eye level.

"Are you _still_ timed out? Oh _come on!"_ he yelled in frustration.

He took a brief glance over his shoulder as he ran. As luck would have it, his entire line of sight was occupied by the ferocious eyes and fangs of one Panuncian beast. He gasped as the beast pounced onto his back, pinning him to the ground. The claws dug into his skin, drawing blood. His right arm reached for his left wrist. A boot stomped over his right wrist, causing him to yelp.

The boy brought his head up, knowing full well who to expect. His emerald eyes pierced the hunter with as much hate he could muster. They stared at each other for a few seconds, only the growls of the Panuncians and Ben's pained gasps could be heard. Khyber kept his boot on the boy's wrist, and knelt down. His face plastered with the most disgusting sneer Ben thought he'd ever see.

"The great Ben Tennyson," Khyber's bass voice struck deeply. "Under the sole of my boot. An insect, laying helplessly on the ground."

"If you haven't noticed, humans are _mammals_, not insects."

"I see you're still the spirited little insect."

"_Mammal_, not insect. Geez, it's not that hard."

A large paw forced Ben's head onto the ground, digging the dirt with the side of his face. Another paw with black claws smashed itself onto the ground in front of his face, causing the human to jolt in surprise.

"You wandered quite a ways," Khyber said in a quizzical manner. "Where did you think you were going?"

"Away from you, _duh_._"_

"You appeared to have been... searching," Khyber slowly smiled. "For my... ship?"

Ben tensed. That split second was all the confirmation Khyber needed.

"They all do that," Khyber said, amusement clear in his voice. "I believe the both of us know the score. This game has gone long enough, don't you think?"

Khyber stood in silence for a few moments, expecting a witty comeback from the human boy. When none came, he raised his brow.

"You're rather quiet," Khyber said, delight evident in his voice. "Is the great Ben Tennyson _afraid_ of me?"

Ben glared at the man. Khyber's gloating smile grew even wider. Ben spat on Khyber's boot.

"In your dreams."

"What dull wit. Not at all your usual standard."

Khyber raised his boot. Ben quickly reached for his watch and slammed it down in less than a second. When Khyber brought his boot back down, Ben had phased through the ground in a trail of blue shades, and his boot merely met with the dirt.

Khyber raised his head and saw Big Chill flying above him. As Big Chill, Ben knew his predator—the Hypnotick—will soon chase him down. He breathed a freezing gust towards Khyber, to which the huntsman shielded from with his arms and ducked out of the way. When the huntsman removed his arms from his line of sight, Ben was long gone.

Then the whistle was heard. Ben didn't have to turn around to see what was coming. Hypnotick, for sure. Followed by the rest of the predator gang closely behind. He had to lose them, give himself time to strategize. He flew lower, phasing through trees and bushes. At least this way, only_ one_ of the predators could catch up to him.

He saw a familiar path ahead. He immediately recognized the path. While searching for Khyber's ship earlier, he found this path led him to a cave. As soon as he emerged from the jungle, the Omnitrix emitted a series of beeps and a bright flash of light.

"Oh no. No no _no_," he whispered to himself, checking his watch. Fortunately the blasted exclamation mark icon wasn't there. The sounds of flapping wings were getting louder. Without much thought, his hand slammed onto the Omnitrix.

A split second after a bright green light, Ball Weevil spat out a lime-colored ball of plasma. He hopped onto the ball and began rolling it under his pointed limbs. His heart skipped a beat when he stumbled, on the verge of falling off his plasma ball. He regained his balance and moved even faster. The ball of slime gradually grew in size.

The cave entrance came into view. Ben inwardly cheered. _I'll lose them in the cave!_

_Beep beep beeeeeppp..._

Unprepared for the sudden change, Ben found himself stumbling over the plasma ball, but his palms hit the ground first, and he halted himself with a sharp intake of breath, hanging mere inches from the explosive plasma ball. He panted heavily. His eyes were wide with horror as he realized what could have happened had he not been able to catch himself in time. His eyes slowly traveled to look at the ball of slime. Its size was about that of a basketball.

He quickly pushed himself up and started to run. He could feel the cool air of the cave as he ran past the entrance. All he had to do was lose them in the dark tunnels beyond the cave.

A heavy force hit him smack on the back. He yelped and fell to the ground. It burned. He wrapped his arms around himself, unable to reach the stinging, burning pain on his back. The chafing of his shirt against the burn on his back made it worse.

"A pathetic attempt," Khyber's voice came from behind. "It seems that you have... reached your limit."

Ben quickly sat up and turned around. Khyber towered above him, a weapon he hadn't seen before in the huntsman's hands. The predator aliens stood obediently behind Khyber, growling, ready to pounce at the slightest hint of a whistle. Ben turned his head to the hunter. He tried to put on a glare, but pain constantly overtook his expression.

"I'm... I'm not done yet," Ben replied breathlessly. His hands moved quickly to prime the Omnitrix—That is, his hands moved as quickly as they could in his current state. Khyber grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, lifted him and pinned him against the wall of the cave.

Khyber smirked. "On the contrary. You are quite finished."

"Giving up so soon, are you," Ben tried to get a rise out of Khyber.

"Perhaps those words are better directed to your self. You no longer prove to be a challenge. A weak-willed prey is no longer prey. This game..."

The tip of the gun rested on Ben's chest.

"... is over."

Ben closed his eyes tightly as tears fell down his face. He braced himself.

_BOOM!_

The ground shook. Ben felt himself hit the hard rocky floor. The rumbling ended after a few seconds later. He slowly opened his eyes. He saw Khyber yelling at the communicator on his arm. The hunstman's voice was angry and hasty. But Ben's ears were ringing—or perhaps he was in shock, he wasn't sure; He couldn't make out the words. He wondered if this was how dying felt like. He saw the huntsman run out in a hurry with his pet, returning to its single Panuncian form.

Ben fought to get up, having no desire to die lying helplessly on the ground. But fatigue began to wash over him. Ben was tired. So very tired. He slowly closed his eyes. He could feel himself letting go, falling from consciousness. He heard a faint crackle in his ear, but after that he could hear no more.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Thank you for all your support thus far! I appreciate every bit of review, fav, follow, and views that you have bestowed upon me. ****The next, likely final, chapter will be a tad difficult to write, and thus will take some time. But this extra long chapter should just about make up for it! Thank you and please enjoy.**

* * *

With one shot from his ship, Rook had taken down another robot drone ship. But he had no time to celebrate. He had managed to dispose of the ones nearby but there were many more approaching.

The drone he had shot swiveled uncontrollably, until it suddenly reflected off a surface, flying in a totally different direction... but there should have been no surface for it to reflect off from. Rook raised a brow. That was when he noticed that the drones approaching him from his right weren't coming towards him directly. Instead, they were elevating, approaching him at an arc. Rook was immediately suspicious. He activated a screen on the ship's dashboard and aimed the ship's blasters directly to his right and somewhat lower, and shot. Sure enough, the shot hit something. Something invisible. Something cloaked. The screen to his right showed a sudden decrease in energy where he had shot.

After briefly acknowledging the impressive cloaking technology that managed to fool his various scans, Rook had an idea. It was a simple idea, but it would surely work. Rook shot once more at the direction, this time aiming higher. It went straight through, and the energy reading showed no change. He concluded that the he was above and left of Albedo's cloaked vessel. Now all Rook had to do was keep shooting and lure the drones into shooting at the cloaked vessel, hoping to either damage the cloaking device or to puncture a hole through the cloaked hull.

And so Rook carried out his plan. The drones that exploded against the cloaked vessel and the shots that were fired at it eventually blasted open a hole, revealing metalwork and pipes. Now that he had a clearer target, he concentrated his blasts towards making the hole bigger. Whether he succeeded in doing so, Rook didn't know. Nor did it matter. He was going to force his ship through one way or another.

Rook held fast onto the steers of the ship. His ship plummeted headfirst through the base's walls, eventually penetrating into a wide space within the base. He pulled the steers with a loud grunt, trying to bring his ship as horizontal as possible.

The ship began to tremble. They were low enough to hit the trees. Then the ship shook violently as it hit the hard ground, plowing through the dirt for about a mile. The ship collided with a large rock, coming to a sudden stop and his body lurched forward. He paused for a moment, panting.

Once he had collected himself he looked through the glass, surprised to find himself in the middle of a jungle. He looked at the sky, and then at the hole his ship had crashed through. Despite the hole, it seemed that the base had an emergency sealant system that prevented air from being blown into space. Rook turned on the radar for Plumber badges. To no surprise, it only showed his own badge. It was worth the try, anyhow. He stood up and made his way to the door. He paused. He quickly turned and went for a small compartment near the dashboard. In the compartment were two small capsules. He placed them into one of his pouches.

As he opened the door of his ship, he tapped the communicator in his ear, ensuring that it was still intact. He hopped off the ship and landed gracefully on the ground. He straightened his back and pressed lightly onto the push-switch on his communicator.

"Ben?" He tried to call. "Ben, are you there?"

Rook frowned. He knew the base was not too large for the communicator's signal strength. Ben had either lost his communicator or... or was somehow unable to respond. Rook frowned, hoping with all his might it was not the latter.

Rook froze. He turned around. He had heard something. He quickly ran around his ship and pressed himself against the somewhat hot surface of his ship. His hand readied on his Proto-Tool. He snuck a look from his cover.

It was Khyber. Rook recognized the species of Khyber's new familiar. A Panuncian. He also recognized what Panuncians were capable of. Rook knew this was a fight he could not win single-handedly. He quickly retracted his head back into cover. The Panuncian was surely sniffing him out by now. Rook decided to get a headstart.

He jumped out of cover and shot at the sabertoothed beast. He quickly turned around, bolting the other way. At the same time the net he had shot trapped the Panuncian. Khyber cursed. As he ran ahead, he shot at the ball bearings of the net, effectively releasing his ally. Rook was long gone from his sight, but the huntsman was far from losing him.

Rook's advantage was temporary. He had to find a place to hide. While he ran, Rook glanced at something in the distance. He then glanced over his shoulder. Khyber and his pet was still some distance behind, but no doubt they would catch up. He took out his Proto-Tool, shaping it like a blaster.

He aimed at a tree in the distance. The closer he got to the tree, the higher he had to aim. When he was right under his target, he shot. He heard a dull thump behind him as he ran past. A few seconds later he heard loud buzzing followed by a surprised yell. Rook smiled to himself in triumph.

He eventually reached a clearing with a path. A few meters down the path was a rather large ball of green slime. Rook's eyes widened. He ran towards the ball of slime. In front of him was the opening of a cave, and inside the cave was...

"Ben!"

Rook rushed to the human's side. He kneeled and quickly assessed his unconscious partner's condition. He frowned. Ben was in terrible shape. Rook's thumb felt the slow pulse near Ben's wrist, so that at least meant Ben was alive. But he had to move. He picked up the human—gently, carefully, and yet with haste—and ran inside. Realizing it was getting pitch black within, Rook turned on a light on his Proto-Tool.

The path forked many times, into multiple pathways. The tunnels seemed to go on and on. He had yet to reach a dead end. Rook then stopped. He panted, turning around, letting the light flash on the path behind him for a few seconds. His ears listened. All he could hear was his own breathing. It was dead quiet in the cave.

Carefully, he set Ben down near a wall. The lack of lighting limited his vision, but inspecting any of Ben's injuries was crucial. He held a scanning device over Ben and used his other hand to move Ben's face from side to side. Aside from scratches and dirt, there seemed to be no serious head injuries. The scanner indicated a slightly higher than normal body temperature, but Ben did not appear to have any fever—not yet, anyway. Rook noted cold wetness on his cheeks, trailing down from his eyes. Rook frowned with worry.

Then Rook noticed blood on his own hand. There was blood on his arms too. Rook was sure he himself was not injured; It had to come from Ben when he carried him. Rook was about to grab the boy's shoulder to inspect his back when Ben started to groan.

"Ben," Rook anxiously called. "Ben, can you hear me?"

Ben's eyes slowly opened. He squinted at the light, groaning again. Rook quickly dimmed the light and put away the scanning device. He put a firm hand on Ben's shoulder, lightly shaking the boy.

"Ben, can you speak? It is me, Rook."

"... Rook?" Ben managed to utter. He stared at the Revonnahgander. "Am I... Are you dead too?"

"I—What?" Rook asked incredulously. He shook his head. "No, Ben, I am not dead. Neither are you. I arrived with my ship not too long ago."

"But... I was..." Ben ran a shaky hand over his chest. No blood, no sign of being shot. Then he remembered. "There was... an explosion..."

"That must have been me. I... crashed my ship in my attempt to maneuver my way into the base."

"So I..." Ben paused, eyes wide with disbelief. "I'm not dead."

Ben stared at the ground, saying nothing else for a long while. Feeling uneasy and increasingly worried, Rook slowly asked, "Are you alright?"

Suddenly, Ben lunged towards him, and Rook felt something wrap around his waist and a weight on his chest. Rook looked down and saw a head of brown hair. Rook sat stunned for a few seconds, confused. But when Rook noticed the boy was trembling, he quickly snapped out of it, realizing he had to do _something_. So Rook returned the embrace. He patted the boy's head. He recalled that such a gesture was comforting to humans.

Realizing what he was doing, Ben quickly pushed himself away. His face flushed. Rook looked at him with confusion and worry.

"U-Uh, sorry dude... It's just... I-I thought I was gonna die... y'know?" Ben stammered, wiping a hand over his eyes. He then added with a weak smile. "Then you crashed in. I guess you saved me this time, huh?"

Rook was confused at the reaction. Did the "there, there" not make Ben feel better? Rook opened his mouth to ask, but then he remembered something else.

"Ben, I need you to turn to the side," Rook gently told him. "I need to examine your back."

"Huh? Oh. Um, yeah. Sure."

Ben carefully lifted his back from the wall and turning sideways. Rook moved behind the human. He brightened the light and lifted the tattered parts of the back of his shirt. Ben then held up the shirt for him, allowing his hands free.

There was a long cut than extended well across the upper part of his back. It bled, but not at all profusely. There was some minor wounds that looked like it had been punctured, and the arrangement looked like it came from the grip of a claw. There were also many other minor lacerations, but one injury in particular stood out. There was a large, circular redness just above the small of his back. The entirety of the wound was red and appeared moist. Blisters were already forming.

Rook took out a small capsule from one of his pouches. He twisted the capsule's cap open, and quickly poured its content into his palm. The viscous, transparent gel flowed slowly. Once he emptied the capsule, he swabbed a bit of the gel with two fingers and applied it to the large cut. The sudden touch of the cold gel stung, causing Ben to jolt with a hiss. Rook immediately retracted his hand.

"I am sorry!" Rook quickly apologized. "I should have warned you."

"I-It's fine, dude," replied Ben between gritted teeth. "What're you doing?"

"I am attempting to apply an antiseptic gel that also contains some agents that promote the healing process onto your wounds."

"Uh... huh."

"It may hurt. May I proceed?"

"Uh, okay. Go ahead."

Ben noticeably tensed as Rook slowly applied the gel across the large cut. He finished the entire capsule worth of gel on the cuts and the puncture wounds. He twisted open another capsule for the burn wound.

"I am now going to apply the gel onto the burn," Rook informed him in advance.

Seeing a nod from the boy, Rook swabbed a bit of the gel, and gently touched—

"_ARRGH!"_ Ben cried out, arching his back.

Rook jumped, withdrawing his hand immediately.

"I am sorry! I am sorry!" Rook repeatedly apologized, extremely concerned. He paused, watching the shirt drop into place, covering the boy's back. He looked at the back of Ben's head and slowly asked, "... Are you alright?"

Ben nodded. "J-Just... get it over with."

Rook nodded, despite knowing Ben could not see him at the moment. He lifted the shirt himself and readied the gel inches above the burn.

"I am attempting once again," he warned his partner, who quickly nodded in response.

Rook tried his best to limit any pressure while applying the gel, but still the human before him tensed, cringed, and at times whimpered. He lightly applied it, causing some to stick to the wound and some remained on his fingers. He couldn't apply the gel evenly. He didn't have the heart to.

"I am done," Rook told him, despite the patchwork of gel all over the wound. Ben visibly relaxed, a sigh of relief escaping from his mouth. As Ben turned his back to the wall, Rook asked, "How do you feel?"

"I've been better," said Ben as he allowed his head to fall backwards against the rocky wall. "How'd you find me?"

"Tachyon emissions tracing. It was Magister Tennyson's idea," Rook answered with a smile.

"Oh, is grandpa Max here?" Ben questioned excitedly. "Where is he?"

"He is..." Rook rubbed the back of his neck. "He is gathering the Plumbers. They will arrive in due time."

Ben narrowed his eyes accusingly at Rook. "Wait, so... You came here... alone? Without waiting for the Plumbers or anything? _You_ rushed ahead?"

Rook slumped. "That is the case, yes."

"Oh, the irony!" Ben began to laugh, but was abruptly interrupted by a jolt of pain, and he brought a hand to his chest.

"Are you alright?" asked a concerned Rook. Ben waved dismissively.

"Bruised. I think. No biggie. What's a biggie is that _you_ rushed ahead! I must be rubbing off on you," Ben smiled broadly at his partner, who merely frowned and rolled his eyes.

Suddenly, there was a loud crackling and static noise in Rook's ear. Ben must've heard it as well, as he twitched and held his ear. Both their communicators were making static noises until it eventually cleared up, followed by an awfully familiar voice.

"Simple-minded fools. You may escape if you like. Your precious Plumbers may seize this base if they like."

Rook and Ben looked at each other. _Albedo._

"But you are all trivialities! Soon, none of you will matter! In addition to my already exceptional intellect, I will soon augment it further with Azmuth's brain! And lest you try to stop me, do try to remember with your weak feeble minds that _I. Have. Azmuth_._"_

After that, it was completely silent. Ben smiled.

"Aaaand the bad guy finally tells us his plans. About time." Ben started to hoist himself up, but Rook stopped him, keeping his hand on Ben's shoulder.

"Where do you think you are going?"

"Uh, to _Albedo?_ He has _Azmuth? _Duh," Ben tried to shrug off the hand. No such luck. Ben looked at Rook's hand on his shoulder. Then he gave Rook a look.

"I am sorry, Ben, but you are injured. It would not be wise of you to—"

"Blah blah," Ben interrupted him. "I've been doing just fine in the last few—"

"No you have not," said Rook with a glare.

Ben returned the glare and opened his mouth to protest. To protest that he was fine and that Albedo needed his butt kicked. But the image of Khyber appeared in his mind. The malicious grin, the sunken red eyes that twinkle with corrupted delight. A gun, pointed squarely at his chest. The sound of the trigger, slowly depressed by a finger.

Ben shuddered. He turned his gaze away. "Whatever."

Rook raised his eyebrows at the lack of objection. He was expecting a whole slurry of protests and provocations, yet none came. If he hadn't been worried earlier, he definitely would be now. Rook was about to voice his concerns when suddenly he halted. He sat very still, concentrating on his ears. Ben noticed it, and the serious look Rook had wasn't helping.

Khyber. Rook had forgotten all about him. Khyber was still out there looking for him, and no doubt his pet would manage to track them down. The sounds of movement and Khyber's voice were still far off, but surely approaching.

"You... wouldn't happen to have," Ben gulped. "K-Khyber after you, would you?"

"Yes. It seems I had forgotten about him."

"First you rush out and now you _forget?_ Next you'll crave chili fries—Hey!"

In one swift motion, Rook slid his arms under the boy, picked him up, turned around and ran. Ben moved his legs in protest.

"Dude! _Not_ cool!" he protested, keeping his voice down. Ben brought up his Omnitrix. "Look, just let me transform and—"

"The light emitted during your transformations, if I may, sticks out like an inflamed thumb," In the darkness it was easy for Rook to catch the green glow of the Omnitrix's screen. "And it would not be wise to have you exert yourself in your current condition."

"Exert my butt," Ben grumbled, crossing his arms stubbornly. Inwardly, he knew that he wouldn't be able to keep up if he ran, but knowing that just made him even more irritated.

"That would not be wise either."

"It's an—... Nevermind. Is your ship still in one piece?"

"I am uncertain. But we can be certain that the Plumbers will arrive in full force soon enough," Rook then suddenly realized something. "We need to turn off the cloaking device."

"Cloaking device? Khyber cloaked the entire planet?"

Rook glanced briefly at Ben, despite it being too dark. He then returned his gaze forward. "This is not a planet."

"What? No way. Don't tell me this is one huge holographic room or something."

"It is a station. The jungle we are in is an artificial environment," Rook explained. "Did you not observe the clouds in the so-called sky? They do not move."

Ben blinked.

"Err, yeah. I knew that."

Then, they saw glimpse of light coming from a corner. Rook's head perked up, and he ran faster. He turned off his own light, turned the corner and he was greeted by a bright light, causing him to shield his eyes. Still he ran straight ahead, emerging from the dark cave, into the brightly lit jungle. But he halted. In front of him were two angry, growling Panuncians.

"O-Oh. It's just them," Ben sighed with relief.

Suddenly one of the Panuncians pounced at them. Rook ducked, and the next thing he knew Ben had already released himself from his hold and had quickly rolled away. Rook was about to yell at the boy and run towards him when the other Panuncian jumped at him, pinning him to the ground. He was barely holding off the hungry mouth of the beast when a green light flashed from the corner of his view.

In the next second, the beast on top of him was blasted away. A pair of large claws hooked him from under his shoulders and he felt himself lifted off the ground. He turned his head upwards and saw Astrodactyl, flying directly towards the big gaping hole in the ceiling.

"Man that must have been one heck of a crash landing," Astrodactyl squawked, referring to the hole.

"It was not a pleasant experience," Rook replied, cringing slightly. He glanced downwards, seeing the Panuncians growling at them as they flew higher and higher. He turned his head to look at Ben. "I must ask that you remain safely hidden once we are up there."

"Yeah, sure."

"I am serious, Ben."

"So am I."

When they flew through the hole, in that room was none other than Albedo. And a strange, red cylindrical machine. Astrodactyl dropped off Rook onto the floor, and landed next to him.

"Tennyson! And the Revonnahgander," Albedo greeted in his Ultimate form. He juggled a green orb in his hand. "You're too late."

Albedo smirked, eyeing a grinning, slobbering Azmuth in front of him. Azmuth was barely walking straight, making random noises that very much resembled flatulence. When he noticed Ben and Rook, he excitedly ran towards them, arms held wide open. Ben and Rook stared at the Galvan, who was now dancing around their legs. Ben looked at Albedo.

"So, uh, what'd you do to him?" Ben asked, partially amused.

"What do you _think_ I did to him?" Albedo then sighed exagerratedly. "What _is_ it like in your inferior minds."

Albedo telekinetically inserted the green orb into a slot on the machine while he strapped himself in. He activated the machine, and a loud hum vibrated across the room as the machine powered up.

"I don't expect any of you to understand. In a few moments, I will _redefine_ the meaning of _intellectual superiority!"_ Albedo cackled, laughing as the machine began to glow dangerously brighter and brighter.

Rook's mind was racing for a way to stop the process. He saw Astrodactyl pulling his head back, mouth open and a green glow from his mouth.

"No, Ben!" Rook yelled.

Too late. Astrodactyl shot a green blast directly at the machine. It exploded onto the machine with a loud burst, sending wires within it loose, releasing electricity throughout the conductive metals. Albedo was briefly electrocuted before he managed to escape. The machine began to shake, and the metals were glowing bright red. It rattled and it shook, and eventually it exploded, sending bits of metals flying in random directions. Rook swiftly grabbed Azmuth and pulled out his Proto-Shield, covering both him and Astrodactyl as they crouched behind the shield.

As soon as the metals stopped flying off, the Omnitrix began to time out, and Ben returned to his human form. Rook glared at him.

"That was absolutely reckless," Rook scolded him as he retracted his shield and stood up.

Ben shrugged, smiling. "Stopped him didn't it?"

Ben got up as well, but then he wobbled. He had barely managed to catch himself when Rook noticed, looking alarmed.

"You _fool!" _Their attention snapped back to Albedo, who had just recovered from the explosion. "That could have killed _all_ of us!"

"But it _didn't_. Geez. Let's just get to the beatdown already."

Suddenly, the floor between them and Albedo opened. Albedo leered.

"Careful what you wish for, Tennyson."

From the opening rose Khyber and his Panuncian. The lift's platform eventually locked at floor level with a loud sound of metals clashing.

"While we're all granting wishes, how about you hand over Azmuth's brain thing and surrender yourselves?"

Or, at least, that was what Rook _thought_ Ben would have said. But Ben said no such thing. In fact, Ben had said nothing at all. Rook glanced at Ben. He saw that Ben's green eyes were widened, filled with terror as he stood transfixed by the mere presence of the huntsman. His mouth was slightly agape, his lips quivered. Sweat began to form on his forehead. Rook opened his mouth, about to snap his partner out of it. But his attention was abruptly snatched away as Albedo laughed aloud.

"I'd love to stay and watch your dead body drop onto the dirty ground, but my plan is far more urgent," said Albedo as he looked at them dismissively. He turned around, already hovering towards a door. He waved lazily at Khyber. "Dispose of them."

Khyber glared at Albedo as the Galvan disappeared behind the door. He then returned his attention to the two of them. He took a few steps forward. Rook readied his Proto-Tool, and stood readily. Khyber then paused in his approach. He scowled at Rook.

"You are the one who intervened with my hunt."

Khyber then laid his eyes on Ben, and his scowl deepened. He brandished his blade.

"_No one_ intervenes with my hunt."


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: **** I said this chapter was going to take some time but one night I couldn't stop writing and wrote well into the next morning. I'm happy with it, and I hope in my sleepiness I didn't screw stuff up. ********Uploading this chapter was a pain in the butt. FFnet why you screwin' with mah chappies.** Anyway, here it is! Last chapter, with Ben and Rook being bros.  


* * *

When Khyber jumped at Ben, his blade ready to strike, Ben didn't make a move to transform or even to dodge. He stood frozen in place. Fortunately Rook had noticed, quickly lining a shot at Khyber, causing Khyber to replace his blade to shield himself from the shot. The strength of the blast sent Khyber flying in a different direction, but the huntsman managed to land gracefully on his feet. Rook quickly turned to Ben, but the Panuncian was rushing at him. He quickly rolled out of the way.

"Ben, _move!"_ Rook shouted, snapping Ben back into reality.

Ben shook his head and activated the dial on the Omnitrix, promptly smashing his hand down onto it, not bothering to select an alien. A flash of green revealed he had transformed into Heatblast. He shot a ball of fire at Khyber, and another at the Panuncian. Khyber ducked out of the way and the Panuncian was hit. Ben stood readily, staring intently at the Panuncian, expecting it to transform into Crabdozer and attack him.

But Ben found himself caught unprepared when it was Khyber who lunged at him. The huntsman slashed at his head, but Ben brought his arms up in time to block the attack. Khyber grabbed the opportunity to stomp him on his chest, hitting the Omnitrix directly, causing Ben to transform back into human form. Ben staggered, looking at his human hands in disbelief.

"How—?"

"One of the advantages of my alliance with Albedo," Khyber told him. "I have some understanding on the inner workings of your Omnitrix."

Khyber stood for a while, observing his prey before him. Ben kept his eyes on him, with a look that so obviously showed fear. His hands shook, and his breaths hitched. Khyber chuckled, his bass voice was piercing. Ben gulped, but the deep sense of dread still remained stuck in his throat.

* * *

The Panuncian weighed down upon his Power Sword. The beast unrelenting in its attempt to crush him under its own weight. But Rook was also relentless in trying _not_ to get crushed. He shifted his weight, and with a mighty slash managed to parry the dangerous paws away. The beast was thrown back, landing on its back onto the steel floor. Rook found it odd that Khyber was not taking advantage of the predator aliens to whale upon Ben. Rook turned his head to check on the human.

Ben's battle was not going well. Ben was barely evading Khyber's attacks, and he wasn't in any of his alien forms. And Khyber... Khyber was in pure fury. His dark expression was unwavering. The large huntsman towered over the smaller human, and Ben was struggling to survive the onslaught.

Rook's attention snapped back to the Panuncian, who had recovered from its fall. It rushed at him again. Rook readied his blade, waiting for it to pounce. But it did not pounce. Instead it ran around him, swiping its tail at him instead. Rook ducked just in time to avoid the sharp edge at the tip of the Panuncian's tail. But just as he did so, he was pounced at, and he rolled away in time. He quickly stood up, but was immediately pushed back down from behind. He fell onto the floor. A pair of paws stomped on the floor, each on each side of his head. He promptly transformed his blade into a blaster, rolled over and shot the Panuncian in the face.

The Panuncian wailed, its face burnt. Rook quickly got up. It was then he saw not one, but three Panuncians.

Rook gulped, briefly wondering how on earth Ben fought the creature.

* * *

Khyber swung his blade furiously. Ben could feel the wind itself being sliced as he barely stepped out of the way. Ben reached for his Omnitrix, slamming down onto it and initiating his transformation. But he didn't—he _couldn't—_catch Khyber who was already smashing his palm against the Omnitrix as well. Just as soon as Ben transformed, he was forcibly reverted back to his human form.

"Without your alien forms," Khyber grunted, swiping Ben off his feet, causing the human to fall harshly on his back. "You are _nothing."_

Ben tried again, this time he decided to do so right after one of Khyber's attacks. He transformed into Goop. He quickly tried to put some distance between him and Khyber. But Khyber was quick. The hunter jumped and leapt, and took hold of Goop's Anti-Gravity Projector, quickly mashing his fist onto the Omnitrix symbol.

Goop gurgled, transforming back into human, finding himself on the floor once again. Desperately, he primed and smashed his hand onto the Omnitrix again.

He had transformed into Pesky Dust. Ben panicked. Not _this_ useless alien! But he had to adapt to the situation. Pesky Dust started to move his wings, ready to fly away and figure out how to use his Nemuina powers against Khyber.

Ben barely had time to register that he was being shot at. He flew around the first shot, and the next. Suddenly Khyber's blade was flying directly for his head. He squeaked, dodging just in time. He heard a growl. He turned, and saw Khyber's hunting rifle aimed straight at him and the hunter's eyes were an intense red. For a moment Ben was frozen in fear, and that one moment was enough for Khyber.

The trigger was pulled, and the energy blast hit its target. Not once, not twice. Khyber shot at the Nemuina with his hunting rifle multiple times, as if he wasn't taking any chances. Pesky Dust cried out in pain at the final shot and fell to the ground with a soft thud. He transformed back into Ben, who panted and groaned, his hands clenched in pain against the metal floor. Ben tried to push himself up, but nevertheless it would have been in vain. Khyber stomped him right back to the ground.

"So you think you're clever," Khyber growled with an edge to his voice. "I will have no more of your wily tricks."

Khyber kicked the boy to turn him over onto his back and earning a small gasp. Khyber cocked his rifle.

"It's been wonderful, Tennyson, but this game ended a long time ago."

* * *

Rook was having a difficult time with three of the Panuncians—No, now there were four. He was contemplating an escape plan. There was no way he could handle the beast continuously multiplying itself. He heard the sounds of shots fired, followed by a high-pitched cry. He turned his head to look, but had to return his attention to the attacking Panuncian. The Panuncians were tagging each other out, taking turns attacking him.

He jumped out of the way of an attack and followed up quickly as he shot a grappler hook upwards. It hooked around a metal pipe, and Rook prayed it was stronger than it looked. With a tug, Rook held fast to the grappling gun and retracted the grappling wire, yanking him off the ground. He swung himself far from the group of Panuncians, giving him room to breathe and think. He glanced at the other side of the room to check on Ben.

His heart skipped a beat. Ben lied motionless on the ground. The barrel of a rifle pointed right at his head.

Rook wasn't sure if the huntsman had already shot Ben or was about to. But he shot at Khyber. It hit, causing Khyber to lose his grasp on his rifle. Rook took advantage of the moment to run towards Ben. In one swift motion he picked up the boy and slung him over his shoulder, earning a surprised yelp. He then ran straight to the door at the end of the room.

Khyber got back on his feet just in time to see Rook's retreating back, along with his quarry being carried away. The Panuncians were already chasing after Rook, but Rook shot a few rounds with his Net Caster at them, delaying their approach. The door swung open automatically upon Rook's approach. When it closed behind him, Rook shot at a panel near the door, effectively disabling it. He could hear ramming and scratching against the door as he ran further and further away.

He ran through a long corridor. The path eventually forked. He had no time to contemplate on which path to take. He blindly ran to the right. The path soon forked again. He chose on, and kept running only to come across another fork. He ran to the left, hoping that he was heading towards some sort of room with escape pods.

He heard a roar. Khyber had managed to blast the door down and now one of the Panuncians had caught up to him. It jumped from behind, but Rook ducked. The Panuncian lept above him and landed in front of him. He was trapped. He looked to his right and saw a door. He quickly ran in and slammed the switch next to the door, locking it. The beast scratched against the door. Rook held his breath, readying his blaster for when the beast breaks through. But no such thing happened, for the Panuncian eventually left... for now. The asylum was temporary, Rook knew that.

Rook looked around the room. It housed a lot of wires and pipes, as well as several consoles and monitors that was fixed to the walls. In the middle of the room was looked like the main console unit. Rook gently set Ben down against it. The boy groaned.

"I'd appreciate not being treated like a sack of potatoes," said Ben, rubbing his side. Then, he looked alarmed, and quickly asked, "Where's Azmuth?"

"He is safe," Rook assured him and pulled out a giggling Galvan from a pouch on his thigh. Azmuth stuck out his tongue and pulled down an eyelid, spitting at Ben. Ben was relieved. He thrust his open hands to Rook, and Rook dropped Azmuth into them.

"You're okay now little buddy," Ben cooed at Azmuth, poking him with a finger. Azmuth climbed onto the finger and started to spin himself on it. Ben smiled, amused by the silly act. "Awww. What happened to him, though?"

"It seems that Albedo has somehow managed to extract Azmuth's brain," Rook hypothesized. "What Azmuth has now is his pre-brain that controls the basic functions of his body."

Azmuth tripped and fell, hitting the floor and making a flatulent noise as he did so. Ben picked up the Galvan and snickered. "Hehe. I like this pre-brain Azmuth."

"Ben," Rook said seriously, grabbing the other's attention. "You must stay here. I will search for and disable the cloaking device."

"I'm coming with you," Ben replied casually as he put Azmuth onto the floor. He watched the Galvan run in circles and hitting its head against one of the consoles. He chuckled softly. Rook groaned in frustration. He knelt down in front of Ben, reached out to his left and picked up the Galvan.

"No, you are not," he said sternly, dropping Azmuth into Ben's hands. "Stay put."

"Stay put? _Me?_ Dude, do you even know me?" Ben replied in jest, looking at Rook with a playful, but thin smile. But Rook was in no mood to humor him.

"Not when you become frightened by the mere sight of _Khyber!"_ Rook snapped at him, raising his voice. He brought his face closer, adding with almost a growl, "You cannot fight, Ben. And you are hurt. You cannot do _anything_ in this state."

Rook obviously had more to say, but the wide-eyed look Ben was giving him sank his heart. He quickly tore away, realizing what he had said. He face softened guiltily. He was about to apologize, but Ben was already glaring back.

"I'm—" he began. "I'm not afraid of Khyber."

"Ben, I—"

"And I'm just fine."

Ben crossed his arms and looked away, keeping his gaze on the floor.

Rook sighed. Steadily, he said, "I am sorry, Ben."

"Don't be. Just drop it."

"I should have been more considerate. I know not what you had gone through in the past few days. Forgive me."

"I said drop it."

They sat in silence. Both had something to say to the other, but neither was willing to begin. The silence was broken by a loud crashing sound, diverting the attention of the two. A pile of metallic items and loose pipes fell at the corner of the room. When the pile settled, Azmuth's head popped out among the miscellaneous metals.

"Drop~it~!" Azmuth seemed to sing with an inane voice.

They stared at Azmuth as he continued to sing the two words and play with the items he was buried in. Ben sighed. He rested his head in his hand, returning his gaze on the floor.

"... You're right. I'm scared to death."

Rook was surprised by the sudden admission, but he kept quiet and allowed Ben to continue.

"I guess Khyber somehow managed to get under my skin. I mean, he... could've ended me so many times. And one of those times he... he almost did."

Ben was quiet after that, so Rook thought he was done. Rook tried to think of something to say, but his mind continued to race for the right words. Suddenly, Ben moaned in frustration. He moved his hand over his forehead, combing his messy bangs to the back of his head.

"This is stupid. Some hero I am."

"It is not stupid."

Ben sighed, as if he did not fully believe Rook's words. "Thanks."

"I mean it," Rook tried to convince the boy, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Ben, you are only human."

Rook's words had struck a chord in the boy. Ben lifted his head, looking fixedly at Rook. Rook stared back, hoping he had gotten through to him.

Then Ben laughed. Rook was taken aback, perplexed by Ben's reaction. He wondered if Ben had finally snapped.

"Dude," Ben managed to speak after calming down a bit. "That's so cheesy. Where'd you get that?"

"It is a phrase referenced in many of Earth's literature," Rook replied, still confused. "Did I not use it correctly?"

"No, no... I think it's pretty accurate," said Ben, offering a grateful smile. "So I guess you'd be... only Revonnahgander." Ben grinned, but then made a thoughtful look. "Er, maybe not. Doesn't sound as good. Does it?"

Rook smiled back. "It does not."

Ben chuckled. He looked away for a second, then smiled at the Revonnahgander.

"Thanks, man," said Ben, offering a closed fist. Rook stared at his fist strangely.

"Do you... want to hit me?"

"It's called a fist bump. Just tap your fist onto mine."

Rook raised an eyebrow, but complied nonetheless. He closed his own fist and tapped it against Ben's.

"Like this?"

Ben grinned, nodding. "Like that."

Suddenly, the screens in the room came to life, causing the two of them to almost jump. They quickly got onto their feet, Ben wobbled as he did so. The screens were showing live footage of security cameras inside and outside the station. Azmuth, who had been jumping around on the controls on the main console unit, cheered.

The main screen in front of them relayed footage from the external security cameras. They saw hundreds of robot drone ships, swarming past the camera. A ship zoomed past, but Rook managed to catch a glimpse of the emblem painted on the ship.

"They are here!" Rook exclaimed.

"Who's here?"

"The Plumbers! They have arrived," Rook sounded excited. Then he saw the shots being fired between the Plumbers ships and the drone ships. "But the robot drone ships are keeping them well away from this base."

"The cloaking device," said Ben, looking through the buttons and switches on the panel. "Maybe we can turn it off from here."

Rook nodded, and began to work on the controls. Ben picked up Azmuth, and held him in his hands. "Good job turning it on, lil' buddy!" he congratulated the Galvan, who in turn started jabbering various nonsense.

The screen in front of Rook minimized the camera's live footage and windows upon windows of text appeared before him. He carefully read through each option, before settling on the ones that would likely lead him to anything related to uncloaking the base.

"I believe I may have found it," Rook excitedly announced.

"Do it fast," Ben's voice had a slight quiver. "Khyber's coming."

Rook glanced at a screen Ben had been watching. In the smaller screen was Khyber and his Panuncian, running straight ahead with purpose. They were fast, quickly going off screen.

Rook returned to the console, this time working with greater haste and giving it all of his concentration. He felt Ben backing away next to him, bumping slightly against the console unit. He held Azmuth tightly to his chest.

"Rook—"

"It is done!"

Suddenly, there was a loud sound. Rook turned around. He saw a large dent in the door. He took a step towards the door, motioning for Ben to step back. There was another loud bang, and the dent in the door grew larger.

"Ben, I will not stop you from engaging the enemy," Rook told him, readying his Proto-Tool as a Power Sword. "But you are still injured. All I ask is for you to be careful. We need only to hold out until the Plumbers board the base."

Ben nodded. He placed Azmuth on his shoulders, and activated the Omnitrix, transforming into Ditto. He held Azmuth carefully in his clawed hands. And then with one last bang the door flung away from its position. Khyber's Panuncian immediately launched itself at Rook, causing the latter to parry with his blade. Khyber shot at Ditto. Ditto jumped out of the way and inadvertantly split himself into numerous copies. The copies ran out of the room, ramming Khyber and causing him to fall onto the ground. Rook managed to free himself from the beast and followed the Dittos out.

Rook wasn't sure where Ditto was leading them. But the corridor looked familiar. Eventually they came upon a gaping hole on the wall. Rook instantly recognized it was the same door that he had gone through, and Khyber seemed to have blasted his way through. They ran past the door, back into the room with the red cylindrical machine.

"Why are we stopping?" Rook asked, seeing the group of Dittos halt.

"Didn't you crash through here? Where's the hole?"

Rook quickly caught on to what Ben was trying to do; Ben wanted to send a flare of their location to the Plumbers from the hole. Rook looked up at the ceiling. He was certain he had damaged the hull all the way through, but there was no hole. No gaping area of missing metal that tunneled into space. The damage surrounding the area was there, but it had been sealed off by metal wires.

"The station's cloaking function has been restored. Your Plumber friends won't be joining you today."

They turned around. A growling Panuncian and a very furious Khyber approached.

"You are more trouble than you're worth, Tennyson," Khyber seethed. "This ends _now."_

* * *

The Panuncian split into several copies, matching the number of Dittos. All of them charged at the Dittos, including Khyber. But Rook quickly stepped into Khyber's path, slashing his blade at Khyber. One by one the dittos began to disappear as each Panuncian attempted to land a killing blow. Until there was only one left, and the last one held Azmuth in his arms. The Panuncians surrounded him from all fronts except his back, but Ditto had backed up against a large silver metal structure. The beasts roared and charged.

But suddenly Khyber's gill flared, emitting a whistle. The beasts stopped abruptly, much to Ditto's surprise. Instead, the one on his left lunged, taking him down onto the ground. Ditto fought to get the beast off of him, but his predator had him pinned to the ground. The Omnitrix beeped, beginning its timeout sequence. As soon as he changed, he hit the Omnitrix once again and transformed into AmpFibian. He placed three of his appendages against the beast and released a large burst of electricity, but left one of his limbs uncharged to hold Azmuth. The beast wailed and cried, allowing AmpFibian room to escape. He flew away and rose up into the air. He glanced at the large metal structure he had his back against earlier.

"Something tells me you don't want me near that thing..." AmpFibian muttered. He flew towards the structure, and readied his charged tentacles. A large bolt of electricity formed between his appendages. He pulled it back and readied himself. As soon as he threw and hit the structure, a blast of energy hit him on the back, causing him to lose his grip on Azmuth. He fell towards the ground, but managed to catch himself and floated back up.

Khyber's gills flared again, and the Panuncians quickly gathered. Then the Nemetrix started to glow, enveloping the beast with a red light. It was brief, and the light faded, revealing a much larger, spikier, and more ferocious form of the Panuncian.

"An Ultimate," Ben uttered dumbfoundedly under his breath. Suddenly he was pushed from his back, as if something had been thrown at him. He fell onto the ground with a thud, and when he turned his head he saw it was Rook, groaning and holding his head.

"Another one of the advantages of my alliance with Albedo," Khyber told them, grinning.

Ben began to time out, causing Rook to fall further onto his back due to his smaller size than AmpFibian. Realizing he was crushing Ben under his weight, Rook quickly got on his feet and then pulled the boy up. Ben coughed, relieved to have the weight off his back.

"Are you alright?" Rook asked worriedly.

"Yeah. Listen, I have a plan—"

Ben was cut off when Rook pushed him away. Ben felt the wind blew past him as the Ultimate Panuncian charged past, ramming into Rook instead.

"Rook!" Ben cried out. He transformed into Rath, running straight towards the Ultimate Panuncian. Rath charged and shouted, "Let me tell you something hyperevolved knockoff-omnitrix-wearing Rook-smashing Ultimate Panuncian, _Rath_ does _not—"_

Khyber shot a grappling wire at him, causing it to wrap around Rath and pulling him onto the ground. With one strong pull, Khyber dragged Rath across the floor, pulling the Appoplexian closer.

"It seems that it is... Rath season," Khyber grinned at the little joke.

Rath was unamused. "_KHYBER SEASON!"_

Khyber hit the Omnitrix located on Rath's chest. A green light revealed Ben's human form. Khyber chuckled.

"_Ben_ season."

Fortunately, Ben was much smaller than Rath. The bindings of the wire became loose, and Ben swiftly got up and out of the coils. As he ran away from Khyber, he started to dial on the Omnitrix, but suddenly he halted in his steps. The Omnitrix—always doing the worst things at the worst possible moments—was timed out.

He was defenseless.

Ben felt the a shiver ran up his spine. He suddenly felt cold. He turned around. Khyber stood tall in front of him, but there was little humor nor delight to be seen in his eyes.

Khyber slashed at him with his blade. Ben squeaked, moving his body to the side. Khyber slashed again, straight across, and Ben jumped backwards. Khyber continued his onslaught, and Ben was driven only by desperation as he evaded, and sometimes barely so.

* * *

Rook found himself dealing with the Ultimate Panuncian surprisingly well—It was much easier to focus his attacks on a single foe instead of multiples of them.

At least that was what Rook had thought for the first two minutes fighting the beast. After that he found that he was wrong. Dead wrong. Every swipe the beast made could very easily be followed up by the accursedly long, sharp tail. Every time the beast charged at him, it could change directions just as easily, and it could also be followed up by the tail swipe. In fact, the tail was a major problem, and it was difficult to focus fire on the tail as it kept moving and the beast was not keen to allow Rook a clear view of its tail.

Rook took his attention to the other fight, concerned with how Ben was holding up. But his moment of distraction caused him a moment of weakness. The Ultimate Panuncian swiped its tail at him, and Rook did not realize in time. He managed to jump out of the way, but the tail managed to hit his fingers. His Proto-Tool blaster was smacked out of his grip, and it flew far across the room, dropping onto the metal floor with a screech.

Almost immediately, Rook began to sprint towards his weapon. The Ultimate Panuncian was having none of that. It swiftly jumped in front of Rook, roaring. It leapt and lunged at him with its claws and sharp fangs. Rook sprung out of the way, and soon found himself backed against a wall.

He glared at the beast as the Panuncian's shadow loomed over him. Rook was defenseless and cornered. He did not see the fight ending well.

* * *

By some form of pure fortune, as Ben stumbled to his right to avoid another attack, his elbow struck Khyber's wrists with momentum, causing the latter to drop his blade. Ben inwardly cheered, but when he saw Khyber's boiling rage, he wasn't too sure anymore if it had been a good thing.

"Enough games!" Khyber yelled, taking out his rifle.

He shot at Ben, hitting him squarely on the chest and sending him flying halfway across the room, stopped by the metal wall. His body slid down the wall and fell onto the floor. He gasped in pain, a hand pressed against his chest.

He saw Khyber approaching, the huntsman's black boots stepped lightly over the burnished metal floor. A gleam from his left caught his eye. He took a quick, brief glance at it. It was... Rook's blaster? Ben's eyes scanned the room for Rook, and he saw Rook wrestling hopelessly against the Ultimate Panuncian. He turned back to Khyber, who had yet to notice the weapon within Ben's reach.

Ben launched himself at the weapon, grabbing hold of it. While still on the floor he immediately aimed it at Khyber. But his arms shook and his face was hardly one of bravery. He was a pathetic sight.

Khyber sniggered. "You must be joking."

Realizing that Khyber was still closing in, he slowly pushed himself backwards with his feet, but his arms still aimed upwards towards Khyber. He pushed himself until he was backed up against a wall, and Khyber was finally right in front of him.

The huntsman towered above him. His face was amused as he observed Ben's shaky aim. He cocked his own rifle and touched its barrel directly on Ben's chest.

"Go on," Khyber mocked. "You don't have the audacity."

Ben's hand shook. The blaster in his hands shook. He willed himself to pull the trigger. But he was paralyzed. The cold metal of a gun's barrel on his chest caused him to hyperventilate as he recalled his last experience with such an instance.

_This is it,_ Ben thought to himself, closing his eyes._ This is how I die._

Suddenly, Ben heard a low hum. He opened his eyes. It came from his right. A couple meters away from him was that large grey metal structure, damaged from his attack earlier. The metallic structure was producing the humming sound. It sounded like the low hums of a generator. Then, Ben thought that if he was going to die anyway, he might as well die destroying something Khyber valued.

Ben switched his target from Khyber to the structure. The instant he saw Khyber's panicked expression, he smiled smugly and pulled the trigger.

* * *

Rook had been pinned against the wall by the Ultimate Panuncian's large paw by the time he heard an explosion as the floor rumbled slightly. He saw both Ben and Khyber blown away by the explosion. Ben dropped just a few feet away from Rook.

Khyber cursed loudly. He stood up and whistled. The beast obediently released its hold and ran towards its master, reverting back to its normal Panuncian form.

"This isn't over, Tennyson," Khyber spat out as he ran out through the door at the end of the room, his loyal familiar following him closely behind.

Rook ran straight towards Ben. He knelt down and propped up the boy's head. When he saw the burns on Ben's arms and torso, his anxiety only grew worse.

"Ben," Rook anxiously called his name. "Ben, answer me."

Ben's body was unmoving. Rook gently tapped the boy's cheeks with his palm.

"Ben," Rook called again, desperation evident in his voice with each passing word. "Do not do this to me. Please, answer me."

There was no response.

Rook held the boy's wrist and left his thumb on the underside. He waited for a pulse. One second had passed. Two seconds. Three seconds. Four seconds. Five...

Rook looked at the boy in his arms in disbelief. But then he shook his head. He refused to believe it.

He put his head onto Ben's chest, but the pounding of his own heart wasn't helping. Rook straightened his back, inhaled deeply, and then exhaled. He placed his ear on Ben's chest again, and patiently listened.

And then there it was. Rook couldn't have been happier to hear the small sound of Ben's beating heart. Rook sighed with relief. Ben was alive. Barely so, but nevertheless alive.

Rook heard the sounds of footsteps, followed by voices. The door at the end of the room soon opened, and it was Magister Tennyson, followed by a whole team of Plumbers.

"Rook!" Max shouted from across the room. When he got closer, he saw the unconscious Ben in Rook's arms. Max gasped. "Ben!"

Max knelt in front of him, and Rook allowed the older man to hold his grandson. Max looked in horror as his grandson slumped rather lifelessly in his arms.

"Is he...?" Max choked on his words, not willing to complete the sentence.

Rook calmly assured him. "Ben is alive, but he requires immediate medical attention."

Max immediately began to bark orders at his squad. The Plumbers got into action right away. Some of them were relaying orders through their communicators. Two of them approached.

The Plumbers knelt next to Max. Max nodded at them and laid Ben onto the floor. Rook watched as they began to examine and perform some first aid on the boy. He felt a heavy hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw it was Magister Tennyson.

"Let them work," Max gently told him. "Ben is in good hands."

Rook reluctantly nodded, and left the Plumbers who were working on Ben. A few minutes later a Plumber rushed into the room, pulling a gurney with him. Rook watched as Ben was moved onto the gurney and swiftly transported out of the room.

Max received a call from his communicator, to which he promptly replied. When he was done, he turned to Rook.

"Gwen and Kevin are after Albedo as we speak," Max told him. "The rest of the Plumber units have been ordered to join the chase."

"Miss Tennyson and Kevin Levin?"

Max nodded. "Bumped into them while we were fighting off the robot drone ships. They'll catch him."

"That is good to know. Albedo has—"

Then Rook looked like he had just remembered something.

"Azmuth! Where is Azmuth?" Rook cried out, frantically looking around the room.

"He's here!" a Plumber called out, holding up the Galvan in his hands.

Rook ran towards the Plumber and retrieved the Galvan. Max joined him as well and looked curiously at the First Thinker, who was swirling and spinning in circles in Rook's hands.

"That's... Azmuth?" Max asked.

"Yes. It seems that Albedo has taken away his brain. It is imperative we capture Albedo before he integrates Azmuth's brain into his own."

Max nodded, immediately sending out orders through his communicator. Then he was approached by a Plumber who greeted him with a salute, and delivered to him a brief report. Max nodded at the Plumber, who then left. Max turned to Rook, giving a stern look.

"When we get back," Max said gravely. "I need to have a word with both you and Ben."

With that, Max left to attend to his duties as Magister. Rook didn't like getting in trouble with Magister Tennyson, but right now he wasn't worried. He was just glad to know that it was over. He was glad to know that Ben was safe and alive.

"Ooooh, you've done it now," Rook heard a familiar voice behind him. He turned around and saw Magister Patelliday, who waved at him. "You're in for one stern lecture from Max."

"Magister Patelliday," Rook greeted him, straightening his back.

"They're already beginning procedures to transport Ben back to Earth," Patelliday told him. "You'd better hurry. They're leaving quite soon."

Rook stared at the older Plumber.

Patelliday shrugged. "Max'll understand. You look like you've been through hell and back."

Rook nodded, saluting the Magister. "Thank you, Magister Patelliday."

Without waiting for a reply, Rook had already fled the scene. Patelliday smiled to himself. He then joined Max in advising and receiving reports from the Plumbers.

* * *

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

Those consistent sounds were the first thing Ben had woken up to. His entire body ached, but whatever he was lying on was soft and comfortable. His head felt heavy, but the pillow under his head was big and well-fluffed. He was cold, but the blanket covering him was warm.

He tried to open his eyes, but the light was too bright, and he groaned as he shut his eyes again. Then he heard shuffling noises. He opened his eyes again, and this time the light was much dimmer.

"Ben," he heard a soft voice call him

Ben turned his head. He saw a tired Rook, sitting next to his bed. Even Rook's short fur had managed to look disheveled, but the Revonnahgander's face was beaming.

"Geez, this is how we keep meeting up anymore," Ben joked, earning a small laugh from Rook.

"You are in the medical bay of a Plumber ship," Rook then explained to him. "We are transporting you back to Earth."

Ben moved his arms, attempting to prop himself up, but Rook quickly stopped him, gently pushing him back down by his shoulders.

"You are supposed to rest," Rook warned him. He then added with a smile, "We are already in enough trouble with Magister Tennyson."

"Where's grandpa Max?"

"Magister Tennyson should be about done surveying the base right now. He said he needs to have a word with the both of us when we get back."

"Oh man, we're in trouble now," Ben chuckled, earning one from Rook as well. Then, he asked, "What happened? The last thing I remember is something exploding."

And so Rook began his retelling of what had occurred after Ben was rendered unconscious. Rook left out certain details—such as when he thought Ben was dead—but otherwise he was pretty thorough, from explaining that the structure Ben had shot was actually an important part of the base's cloak generator to describing Albedo's capture by Gwen and Kevin.

"So Albedo didn't get to use the brain thing?" Ben questioned. "Azmuth's smart again?"

"Indeed, but reintegrating Azmuth's brain requires more sophisticated equipment found in the Plumber's headquarters. Miss Tennyson and Mister Levin will be meeting with us back on Earth. They are very concerned with your well-being."

Ben could just picture his cousin lecturing him about recklessness and Kevin cheering him on for surviving an explosion. He smiled warmly at the thought.

"And Khyber?"

Rook shook his head. "He escaped. We could not capture him."

"Oh."

Then the two of them were quiet for a while. Only the beeping sounds of the heart monitor accompanied the silence. Ben looked at his arms, and saw that they were neatly bandaged. He felt some constriction around his chest as well. His body still ached terribly and his joints were uncooperative. But still he smiled. Never mind that Khyber wasn't caught—he didn't expect the huntsman would go down so easily anyway. He smiled because it was finally over. And he couldn't have done it alone.

Ben slowly raised his hand, and closed it into a fist.

"Thanks, dude."

Rook smiled, and touched the fist with his own.

"Anytime, Ben Dude."

* * *

_And there we have it! Thank you for following Confidence to the end. Being that it's my first story posted for the whole net to see, it's been swell. It was fun. But goodness knows how many times I had to go back to a chapter to realize I forgot something-Can't imagine how some writers can write over twenty chapters! You're all superhuman, I swear._

_You can ignore the following notes; They're just to clarify certain things. Also for silly rantings._  
_- I took many liberties with this. Not sure if it's even possible for enemies to activate the Omnitrix-I'm pretty sure it isn't with the new Omnitrix. Unless I'm sure it's possible in canon, this is one liberty I won't be taking again in a long time._  
_- I had a hard time writing Rath into this chapter. At first I thought he was taking away from the grim situation, and then I felt like he didn't, and then I was just confused but liked the whole "Rath/Khyber season" thing and just left him there. (From the episode Of Predators and Prey)_  
_- I probably forgot something. It took me three reads to realize I forgot about Azmuth, who otherwise would've been left sitting alone in the room with the cerebral vortex machine for the entire chapter. Poor guy._  
_- About the part where Rook couldn't feel Ben's pulse: Rook was panicked, and Ben already had such a weak pulse going. So in his uncontrolled anxiety, Rook had trouble detecting Ben's pulse. I pulled this from a similar experience I had with my dad, who one day fell on his face while he was reading. My mom was, obviously, panicking, and frantically tried to feel for his pulse but she felt nothing. Yet, a few seconds later he sat back up and laughed, saying he was kidding. To this day I'm not sure whether he actually had a near-death experience or he just had a really dark taste in comedy.__  
- I'm not sure what Rook refers to Kevin as. Kevin Levin? Just Kevin? No idea and I'm not sure which episode to refer to, so I went with the first one._  
_- The ending may or may not be abrupt, but I do intend to leave it like that. I kind of like it.  
__- I've looked at too many BRooken on tumblr and now see "Ben Dude" as a pet name.  
_

_That's it. It's been swell. Thank you._


End file.
